Congress to act by itself on DREAMERS?

A New York Times editorial today notes that, in the face of a hardline, punitive White House position on immigration, Congress could decide in a bi-partisan way to protect the DREAMERs, and set a foundation for more immigration policy-making.

the White House issued its hardline demands on Sunday as a condition for re-installing legal protection for DREAMERs.

Today’s editorial says, “So what can Republicans do? Start by working across the aisle on sensible immigration legislation. That would begin with what got this entire discussion started: a deal to protect the Dreamers. It would not include Mr. Trump’s border wall, a nonstarter for Democrats that Republican budget hawks also oppose.

No matter what the final package looks like, it needs to get to the floor and be put to a vote — which depends on the House speaker, Paul Ryan, and the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, embracing higher principles than fear of their Tea Party rebels. This doesn’t need to be so hard: There’s a sympathetic population that needs immediate help, there are blueprints on the table that might find bipartisan consensus, and there is a ticking clock.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *